Is Aquaponics really the most economically way to grow anything ?

[arachdog]

http://www.greenhousecanada.com/content/view/965/38/

Interesting read.

The fact that a FORD motor company plant may turn into an aquaponics plant also makes one wonder. Vermiponics is probably the way to go if you dont want fish. But if you want fish or know people that do... then aquaponics is better, hands down.

Very interesting Ravis. That study would seem to give cause for hope. Although it needs to be properly examined and then independently repeated before any real conclusions can be drawn. There's a lot of places where an experiment like this could go wrong. Was it really a world class hydroponic nutrient tailor made for the crop?. Was the optimum concentration and pH maintained at all times ?. etc. If it holds up to that sort of scrutiny then that's great news.

[Dufflight]

I read in a hydro mag that nutrients had increased in cost by 1300% and that was a couple of years ago. And as the cost of oil goes up it might be better to put infrastructure in now. CSIRO are developing plants to be used as fish feed to replace the fish meal. Sequence valves are handy for covering more gb's with less water. I don't have that problem but still run an 8 way valve. In theory I could run all these gb's from one small ft.

[GaryD]

Hi,

I think that the work that people (like mornings) are doing with vermiponics (or whatever your pet name for it is) is valuable for the fact that it is an environmentally-appropriate approach to hydroponics.

Aside from the cost of hydroponic nutrients, there's the question of sustainability.........since many of them are chemical elements that are by-products of mining or oil/gas production.

Vermiponics puts control of the nutrient supply back in the hands of the backyard farmer......a good thing.

Gary

[arachdog]

I read in a hydro mag that nutrients had increased in cost by 1300% and that was a couple of years ago. And as the cost of oil goes up it might be better to put infrastructure in now. CSIRO are developing plants to be used as fish feed to replace the fish meal. Sequence valves are handy for covering more gb's with less water. I don't have that problem but still run an 8 way valve. In theory I could run all these gb's from one small ft.

1300% over what time period ? I'm presume your talking a reasonably short time period since it worthy of note. I also presume this doesn't apply to broad acre farming fertilizer either since I think I would have noticed the impact that would have had on my grocery bill.
If all that's true then it sounds like demand is outstripping supply a bit and the hydro-nutrients suppliers are profiteering. The market should balance out eventually.

Where did you here about this CSIRO research ? I'd be very interested in finding out more about it. Historically plant derived protein has always been a poor substitute for fish meal in food for many types of fish. If they've managed to fix that somehow then they have cracked a massive problem. Nobel prize material!

OK I understand what you mean now. Have you considered using NFT, or perhaps adding individual drip feed system to your current grow bed? Then you wouldn't need any sequencing valves.

[beelove]

I think that a commercial op. should be respectful enough to the environment to grow some if not all of its fish food. this might seem cost prohibitive(more space and energy) but all the food systems would have other advantages for the plants or the fish. Paying some large company to do this for you put it in to plastic, and truck it long distances may save money, but at what cost to the planet. I think the fact that AP is an economical way to grow food should be incentive enough to persue commercially.

[Kaduda]

I'm looking at getting into aquaponics for myself and for a profit...I'm looking at tilapia fish because I can grow my own food...I want to build something that once built...Has very little input costs...For me...Space isn't a problem...I have 320 acres...heating isn't either...I have many cheap sources...like cutting my own wood or burning straw...

My main cost at the moment is the setup...Though I will admit I am looking at this on a much larger scale...I'm looking at a greenhouse that's 48 feet by 96 feet...and thus with the right sized boiler my budget for those two items hits near the $30,000 CAD mark...

[Kaduda]

Just came across this article...From the SRAC (Southern Regional Aquaculture Center) Titled:

The Economics of Recirculating Tank Systems: A Spreadsheet for Individual Analysis

Link below

http://srac.tamu.edu/getfile.cfm?pubid=107

[arachdog]

Beelove, I doubt that the margins are large enough to go about in such an uneconomical way. Also I'm not sure what you are suggesting on using as an input but whatever it is it has to come from somewhere which is still food-miles. I guess your talking about some sought of fertilizer, in which case your probably better off (in a commercial sense) using it directly with pure hydroponics. To convert it into algae to feed to your tilapia to create fertilizer for you hydroponics just seems perverse.

I understand what your saying in general. If you can make a profit in an ethical way, it doesn't really matter that its not the maximum profit you could be making. I agree with that, however there's a definite risk that someone will come along and be prepared to accept similarly small profit margins using more economical (possibly less ethical) methods and drive you out of the market.

If I had that much land Kaduda, I think I would be looking more into extensive aquaculture. You should be able to turn a healthy profit with far less management, running costs, and capital investment.

[Kaduda]

I'm just in the planning stages at the moment...I'm looking at building a gutter connected greenhouse for future expansion...If I can set things up right...My profits will go back into the greenhouse...

Now if only I had a pile of tomatoes ready to go...Because of the weather in Florida...Some tomatoes have doubled in price...

[Ravnis]

Arachdog,

Tilapia will eat grass. Growth is 1/4th of the rate as it is with high protien fish feed. It is one of few fish currently known that can assimilate all essential amino acids from plant matter and still have a high growth rate. Pacu would be better and have same temp requirements, but has great difficulty breeding in captivity and requires hormonal treatment. THey also eat hen scratch , so they can be fed quite cheaply. Of course these different feeds will impact growth rates which will directly impact profits. It becomes a matter of balancing production needs with overhead. A fundamental of any manufacturing business be it food or anything else. If reports of fish stocks being depleted does indeed become a reality, then being able to grow ones own fish feed will become the profitable business.

I have to agree with your recommendation to kaduda about extensive aquaculture if fish production is the main goal. All the studies I have read on the matter show that pond raising of fish is more economical than recirculating aquaculture. He would have to pick a species other than tilapia for that though as they would not survive winter in a pond and recirculating systems is about the only way to ensure survival during that time with that species. I do rather like recirculating systems for one key reason, ease of harvesting although a pond could be drained as well.